Robot system and method for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes

ABSTRACT

At present, the cathode stripping process as it is carried out today presents the disadvantage of being carried out manually or through equipment specially designed for this task, but inevitably it requires human intervention whether for stripping or classification. Due to the above a robot system has been developed to automate the process of cathode stripping process. The robotic system is composed mainly of a robotic manipulator ( 1 ) of at least 5 degrees of freedom, and a gripping mechanism ( 2 ) which allows to take a cathode, ( 3 ) from a feeding rack ( 4 ) located at one of its sides, and which moves the cathodes through a defined path to the stripping station ( 5 ), where synchronized with the carousel the cathode ( 3 ) stripping method from the base plate will take place in a sequential and programmed way through different operations of hammering, bending and separation.  
     Then, the robotic manipulator ( 1 ) takes the base plate and moves it to the unloading rack while the cathode ( 3 ) is stored in pallet for being later moved. Additionally, this robotic system comprises a station for the removal of rejected cathodes and a station for the reposition of plates.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of provisional patent application Ser. No. 60/734,986 filed 2005 Nov. 10 by the present inventor FEDERAL SPONSORED RESEARCH:

Not Applicable

SEQUENCE LISTING OR PROGRAM

Not Applicable

BACKGROUND

1. Field of Invention

This invention relates to the use of robotic technology in mining industry specifically in hazardous areas such as the electro-winning plant.

BACKGROUND

2. Prior Art

The electrodeposition process is one of the current and simplest methods to recover, in a pure and selective way, the metals in a solution. This process mainly uses the permanent cathodes which are deposited in benches for a determined period of time and through the electrometallurgical process, the metal in the solution starts to deposit in the walls of the plate until reaching a determined weight. Once the weight is reached, the cathodes are retrieved (harvest) through an operation carried out by the bridge crane, which takes the volume of cathodes of each cell and moves it to the stripping machine or they are separated manually.

The current method has the following stages:

-   -   1. Positioning of the cathodes in a receptor. At the outlet of         the feeding chain, the cathodes are placed in a metallic         structure adjacent to the machine     -   2. Bending of the cathode. This procedure starts the separation         of the steel copper interface.     -   3. Separating gripping mechanisms. The gripping mechanism acts         once the separation has been started, but they are not enough to         complete the whole separation process.     -   4. Blades for total separation. The machine rotates towards the         blades which descend and complete the process of separation of         the cathode.     -   5. Copper and steel manipulation. Once the complete separation         has ended, the machine rotates again to the cartridge station.         In this stage the copper is received by the lower part and it         falls down to the conveyor belt which feeds the binding and         sample taking. Once the copper is removed, the machine rotates         to take out the steel which is carried to the preparation of         base plates.     -   6. Finally, the machine rotates to receive another cathode from         the conveyor belt and to start the cycle again. In the event the         initial separation has not been produced the machine has a         vibration system (rubber fists) which acts to generate the         separation.

Particularly, copper stripping as it is done today, has the disadvantage of being carried out manually or through equipment specially designed for this task, but it inevitably requires human intervention, whether for stripping or classification.

Some serious factors are added such as:

-   -   The personnel carrying out the stripping process is subjected to         a high physical demand and harsh environmental conditions.     -   The atmosphere in an electro-winning plant is highly         contaminated and presents potential risks for the plant         personnel.     -   Maintenance procedures are difficult to carry out due to room         space problems.

SUMMARY

A robot system for automated cathode stripping has been developed. The use of this automated robot system to carry out the task avoids human intervention in the cathode stripping process from the mother blank.

DRAWINGS—FIGURES

In the drawings, closely related figures share the same numbers, with different alphabetic suffixes.

FIG. 1. General view of a robotic system for cathode stripping.

FIG. 2. View of a robotic manipulator moving a cathode to the stripping station.

DRAWINGS—REFERENCE NUMERALS

1. robotic manipulator

2. gripping mechanism

3. cathode

4. feeding rack

5. Stripping machine

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

This invention relates to a new robot system for cathode stripping, which is carried out automatically through anthropomorphous robotic arms of at least 5 degrees of freedom, which are installed at one side of the stripping station.

With reference to FIG. 1, FIG. 2, and FIG. 3, the robot system is composed mainly of one robotic manipulator (1) of at least 5 degrees of freedom, provided with a communication, acquisition and control system, and a gripping mechanism (2) to allow to take one cathode (3), from a feeding rack (4) located at one of its sides, and moves it through a defined path to the stripping machine (5), where synchronized with the carousel it will carry out the cathode stripping process from the base plate in a sequential and programmed way through successive operations of hammering, bending and separation.

The robotic manipulator (1) takes the base plate moves it to the unloading rack, while the cathode (3) is stored in pallet for the subsequent moving.

Additionally, this robot system contemplates a station for the removal of the rejected cathodes and one station for the reposition of base plates. 

1. A robot system for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes, comprising an anthropomorphous robotic arm of at least 5 degrees of freedom, one control, communication and programming unit, one gripper adapter, one gripper mechanism, its fingers, one gripper pneumatic driving system, one electric supply system and one unloading rack wherein the anthropomorphous robotic arm of at least 5 degrees of freedom is provided with a gripping mechanism which allows in a sequential and programmed way to take a cathode from a feeding rack located at one of its sides, and moves it through a defined path, to the stripping station, where synchronized with the carousel will carry out in a sequential and programmed way the cathode stripping process from the base plate through successive operations of hammering, bending and separation, in such a way that once this procedure is finished the robotic manipulator takes the base plate and moves it to the unloading rack, while the cathode is stored in pallet for the subsequent moving.
 2. A robot system for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes, according to claim 1, wherein the anthropomorphous robotic arm of at least 5 degrees of freedom is provided with a gripping mechanism which allows in a sequential and programmed way to take, manipulate and release one base plate to move it from the stripping station to the unloading rack.
 3. A robot system for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes according to claim 1, wherein the anthropomorphous robotic manipulator could communicate by itself or through a PLC interface with the control system both of the ISA process and the Kidd process.
 4. A robot system cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes according to claim 1, wherein the anthropomorphous robotic manipulator has the capacity to obtain and interpret the information of analogue and/or digital sensors installed both in the ISA process and in the Kidd process.
 5. A robot system for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes according to claim 1, wherein the anthropomorphous robotic manipulator has the capacity to generate analogue and/or digital signals to control analogue and/or digital input devices.
 6. A robot system for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes according to claim 1, wherein the anthropomorphous robotic arm of at least 5 degrees of freedom, with a pneumatic gripping mechanism which allows to take, manipulate and release a cathode and/or a base plate to move it in different paths, to the stripping station within the work volume of the robotic system in an automated way.
 7. A robot system for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes according to claim 1, wherein a pneumatic gripping mechanism is used comprising at least 4 fingers which allow to grasp and release the base plates.
 8. A robot system for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes according to claim 1, wherein the robotic manipulator of at least 5 degrees of freedom is mounted on a fixed and/or mobile support located between the mobile drawer racks with rectangular base and the cathode stripping machine.
 9. A robot system for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes according to claim 1, wherein a cathode feeding rack is used which is on a mobile structure with rectangular base forming plane faces, so the inside part is hollow, and the racks moves outside or inside the work volume of the robot to be filled with cathodes.
 10. A robot system for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes according to claim 1, wherein a rack for unloading base plates is used which is has a rectangular base forming plane faces, so the inside is hollow and the racks move outside or inside the work volume of the robot to be filled with base plates.
 11. A robot system for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes according to claim 1, wherein the anthropomorphous robotic manipulator of at least 5 degrees of freedom, with a pneumatic gripping mechanism which allows to take, manipulate and release, one base plate to move it in different paths to the unloading rack within the work volume of the robotic system in an automated way.
 12. A robot system for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes according to claim 1, wherein the anthropomorphous robotic manipulator has an electrical system driven by three-stage induction motors, with vectorial and/or scalar control.
 13. A robot system for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes according to claim 1, wherein the system could be integrated to ISA process and to Kidd process.
 14. A robot system for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes according to claim 1, wherein the system could be integrated not only to electro-winning processes of different metals such as copper, zinc, but also it could be used to carry out stripping procedures in a wide range of other industrial productive processes.
 15. A robot system for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes according to claim 1, wherein productivity and efficiency in the stripping process increases.
 16. A robot system for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes, according to claim 1, wherein it prevents the plant personnel from being subjected to a high physical demand and harsh environmental conditions.
 17. A robot system for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes according to claim 1, wherein multiple sensing devices could be integrated such as artificial vision, weighing sensors, distance sensors, etc.
 18. A robotic method for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes using the robot System of claim 1 to 17, wherein the anthropomorphous robotic arm of at least 5 degrees of freedom is provided with a pneumatic gripping mechanism which allows in a sequential and programmed way to take, manipulate and release a base plate to move it from the stripping station to the unloading rack.
 19. A robotic method for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes using the robot System of claim 1 to 17, wherein the anthropomorphous robotic arm of at least 5 degrees of freedom is provided with a pneumatic gripping mechanism which allows to take, manipulate and release, a cathode and/or base plate to move it in different paths within the work volume of the robot system in an automated way.
 20. A robotic method for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes using the robot System of claim 1 to 17, wherein the anthropomorphous robotic manipulator could communicate by itself or through a PLC interface with the control system both in ISA process and Kidd process.
 21. A robotic method for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes using the robot System of claim 1 to 17, wherein the anthropomorphous robotic manipulator has the capacity to obtain and interpret the information from analogue and/or digital sensors installed in ISA process and Kidd process.
 22. A robotic method for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes using the robot System of claim 1 to 17, wherein the anthropomorphous robotic manipulator has the capacity to generate analogue and/or digital signals to control the analogue and/or digital inputs devices.
 23. A robotic method for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes using the robot System of claim 1 to 17, wherein a pneumatic gripping mechanism is used comprising at least 4 fingers which allows to grasp and release the base plates.
 24. A robotic method for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes using the robot System of claim 1 to 17, wherein the robotic manipulator of at least 5 degrees of freedom is mounted on a fixed and/or mobile support located between the mobile drawer racks with rectangular base and the cathode stripping machine.
 25. A robotic method for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes using the robot System of claim 1 to 17, wherein a cathode feeding rack is used which is a mobile structure with a rectangular base forming plane faces, in such a way that the inside is hollow and the racks move outside or inside the work volume of the robot to be filled with cathodes.
 26. A robotic method for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes using the robot System of claim 1 to 17, wherein a base plate unloading rack is used which is a structure with a rectangular base forming plane faces, in such a way that the inside is hollow and the racks move outside or inside the work volume of the robot to be filled with base plates.
 27. A robotic method for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes using the robot System of claim 1 to 17, wherein the anthropomorphous robotic manipulator of at least 5 degrees of freedom, with a pneumatic gripping mechanism which allows to take, manipulate and release, one base plate and move it, in different paths to the unloading rack within the work volume of the robotic system in an automated way.
 28. A robotic method for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes using the robot System of claim 1 to 17, wherein the anthropomorphous robotic manipulator has an electrical system driven by three-stage induction motors with vectorial and/or scalar control.
 29. A robotic method for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes, using the robot System of claim 1 to 17, wherein it could be integrated to the ISA process or to the Kidd process.
 30. A robotic method for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes using the robot System of claim 1 to 17, wherein it could be integrated not only to electro-winning processes of different metals such as copper, zinc, but also it could be used in stripping processes in a wide range of other industrial productive processes.
 31. A robotic method for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes using the robot System of claim N^(o) 1 to N^(o) 17, wherein productivity and efficiency of the stripping process increases.
 32. A robotic method for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes using the robot System of claim 1 to 17, wherein it prevents the plant personnel from being subjected to a high physical demand and harsh environmental conditions.
 33. A robotic method for cathode stripping in electrometallurgical and industrial processes using the robot System of claim 1 to 17, wherein multiple sensing devices could be integrated such as artificial vision, weight sensors, distance sensors, etc. 